Tensile

Tensile testing is one of the most widely-used across the fibre testing industry. Assessing the tensile strength of a fibre can reveal much about its potential usage and, in the haircare industry, can provide a baseline for the effect of a product exposed to it.

Tensile testing of man-made, technical filaments has historically been carried out on a Universal Testing Machine (UTM) with the filament mounted on a card frame using adhesive. Great care must be given to specimen preparation to avoid premature failure. Any misalignment of the sample will create unnecessary bending stresses at the mounting point, resulting in a premature break.

Dia-Stron offers tensile testing systems that can be automated, to provide high sample throughput with consistent testing parameters, as well as allowing for both wet and dry measurements.

The MTT690 is an automated, consistent and efficient instrument designed to measure the tensile properties of hair. It offers a high throughput of 100 single specimens, in both a dry or wet state. It is primarily used to support strength, hydration and damage repair claims.

The LEX820 is a high resolution extensometer, designed especially for brittle filaments or fibres that fail at low strain values. At its core, a DC micrometer drive delivery exceptionally smooth travel, combined with a high positional repeatability to acquire detailed stress/strain data. A 20N S-beam load cell features on the LEX820 to capture force data and offers excellent linearity and low compliance.

The CYC801 measures tensile fatigue properties of fibres by performing multiple tensile cycles until failure. This provides a realistic representation of daily fatigue and is ideal for substantiating breakage resistance claims. It can also evaluate the damage of chemical insults and analyse multiple survival rates.